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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30095883">Aftershock</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alruix/pseuds/Alruix'>Alruix</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Grey's Anatomy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, F/M, starts with 8x22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 22:15:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>977</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30095883</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alruix/pseuds/Alruix</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Lexie confessed her feelings to Mark the night before she had in the show, where Julia hadn’t interrupted. But what happens when the universe finds another way to intervene?</p><p>Set 8x22</p><p>Disclaimer - I obviously do not own Grey's Anatomy or it's characters.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Arizona Robbins/Callie Torres, Lexie Grey/Mark Sloan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Aftershock</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>In the future, I may convert it into a oneshot, but for now it will be multi-chapter. </p><p>Alright, you know the drill. Comment or review, whatever! :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>I'm going to apologize upfront for how extremely short this chapter is.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Set 8x22</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lexie confessed her feelings to Mark the night before she had in the show, where Julia hadn’t interrupted. But what happens when the universe finds another way to intervene?</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“If you love someone, you tell them. Even if you’re scared that it’s not the right thing. Even if you’re scared that it’ll cause problems. Even if you’re scared it will burn your life to the ground, you say it, and you say it loud and you go from there.” - Mark Sloan</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Mark was frozen in place. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The only sound he heard was the patter of the rain on the pavement and on the small roof above him. He was standing just outside of the hospital under an awning-type ceiling to avoid being drenched by the rain. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he first arrived in Seattle to get Derek and Addison back, it rained on his first day. It seemed like it was always raining. The only time the sky was clear was when he was with </span>
  <em>
    <span>her. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Of course it wasn’t always raining, but it felt like when she was there, the skies would clear, and he would see the world from a new perspective. Like she was a breath of fresh air in his lungs. He would do anything to keep the rain at bay. Anything to keep her with him, but somehow he managed to force her away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But there she stood a few feet from him, rain soaking her hair and clothes. The water straightened her hair, causing her bangs to drop to the top of her eyes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stared at her, the conversation they just had replaying in his head.</span>
</p><p>---</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh. Hey,” Lexie said after noticing Mark standing and looking at his phone.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey,” he replied, not averting his gaze from the device in his hand.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thanks, uh, for today.” Mark looked up as she continued speaking, “For-for letting me, uh…”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Noticing her struggle for words he spoke, “You did a good job in there.” He then looked back down at his phone.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thanks,” she breathed.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He put his phone in his pocket after checking for notifications, and faced her. Mark could tell something was off, and asked, “You okay?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I love you,” she blurted. Did he hear that right?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh god, oh my god that just came f-flying out of my face like it was so-some kind of- I love you.” Lexie balled up her fist and her posture deflated, then made other hand gestures.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I just-I did it again,” she laughed nervously. “I love you. I do. I just...I love you. And I have been trying not to say it. I have been trying so hard to mash it down and ignore it and not say it and Jackson,” she said, gesturing to the E.R. doors. Mark followed her arm only to find no one standing there. Is she losing her mind?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“-is a great guy. He is. He’s gorgeous, and he’s younger than you. He doesn’t have any grandkids, or babies with his lesbian BFF. And he’s an Avery and he liked me, you know? He really liked me.” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Mark wondered where she was taking this, because pointing out everything that went wrong was not the best way to profess her love.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“But that was never gonna work out, because I love you. I am so in love with you,” she paused, “You’re in me! It’s like you’re a disease, it’s like I’m infected by Mark Sloan,” she laughed nervously again, and her voice broke.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“And I can’t think about anything or anybody, and I can’t sleep, I can’t breathe, I can’t eat. And I love you, I just love you all the time...it’s every minute of every day. And I...love...you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She shook her hands, and broke eye contact with him, “God, that feels so good to just say that. I feel so much better. I love you.” She looked at him expectantly, but he stood, completely flabbergasted. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>---</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>There was no choice. It was Lexie, it would always be Lexie. But instead of telling her he felt the same, he stood in a shocked silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He could tell his silence was freaking her out and making her mind race with several different thoughts, but he couldn’t force the words out of his mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mark's own mind was racing. He had tried to swallow his feelings and suck it up. He had Julia. She had Jackson. Only she didn’t have him because she wanted Mark. Denying his feelings was pointless because even Jackson knew how they felt about each other. He knew in his gut that Lexie was the person he wanted to settle down with. At first he thought it could’ve been Addison, but that didn’t work out. Lexie was the one. There wouldn’t be anyone else, not even the girl he was currently dating. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It infuriated him that he somehow forgot how to speak, that he couldn’t pour his heart out as she did only minutes ago. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>After minutes of hearing only rain and cars, Mark’s pager went off. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not on call-” he started, but his words caught in his throat when he read the words. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mark?” Lexie asked worriedly after noticing his facial expression. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He gulped before speaking, “I-I..I gotta go.” Mark began walking toward the E.R. doors when he heard Lexie’s voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mark turned around for a split second and said already grief-stricken, “It’s Callie. And Arizona,” his breath hitched, “And Sofia.”</span>
</p><p>
  <b>Seattle Grace-Mercy West is a magnet. It pulls you in even if you planned on coming back the next day. Not only did it rein in it’s physicians, it also attracted numerous disasters. Ranging from gunmans, to doctors dropping like flies, to ambulance crashes. Now an earthquake could be added to that list.  </b>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>If you're waiting for an update, feel free to read my other Greys stories. </p><p>"Out of the Woods" - 10 chapters, close to completion<br/>"Ghost of a Surgeon's past" - 2 chapters, just starting its journey.<br/>Both are Meredith centric.</p><p>:)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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